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Tuesday, April 30, 2013

Hello, readers! I have a funky mani to share with you today. I have some fun studs from Born Pretty Store and I wanted to share some different looks I came up with using them! I've done one look on each nail instead of 4 separate photos.

This is what came in my set:

Nail glue, orange sticks to help position the studs, and 2 stud wheels.

Here is a bit more of a closeup of the wheels so you can see the different colors and shapes. There are stars, squares, circles, hearts, triangles, and more in different sizes and colors! Lots of things to choose from!

And here is my mani to show off 4 different looks using the studs! I used Illamasqua Vice (dries to a rubber finish) and Nails Inc Leather Effect in NoHo to tie in the stud look.

They were really easy to apply and laid flat on my nail with the exception of the big heart on my pinky. My nail was too round so the edges stuck off and got caught on things. The smaller shapes worked nicely!

You can get these nail studs and other nail art supplies from Born Pretty Store for $12.99 here:

What do you think? Will you be ordering these or any other things from The Born Pretty Store? If so, please use my 10% off code with your order: JACJ61. Don't forget that Born Pretty ships free worldwide!

Monday, April 29, 2013

Good morning, readers! I have a review for you today of a few glass nail files by Mont Bleu Company. They are based in Prague, Czech Republic and asked if I wanted to try out some of their tempered glass nail files and of course I agreed!

I didn't have a glass nail file that I was using before these arrived so I can't compare to other brands but I really liked using these! I'm used to a regular nail file and I was so surprised when using these at how quickly they filed down my nails without the tugging feeling I was used to with the filing motion. I had to be careful and pay attention to how much I was filing off!

Mont Bleu Company sent me three different glass nail files to review. 2 are from their "Crystal Line" and one is a Hard Case Nail File. The only difference in the Crystal Line files are their length. The smaller one is perfect for my purse while the bigger one can be stored in my drawer with other nail tools. I love that they have velvet slipcovers to keep them in when I'm not using them!

The Hard Case file is really great because it isn't decorated and is in a protective case so I think I'll give it to my husband to keep in his truck for the possibility of a nail break while we are away from home.

Here is a little bit of info on both kinds:

Crystal Line:"Glass nail files made from high quality tempered Czech glass decorated with Swarovski crystals, one of our bestsellers. Ranked as the safest and durable manicure tool, our glass nail files will satisfy any need of yours; whether for professional use or home nail do. We offer plenty of designs, even with silver figurines, and semi-precious stones."

Hard Case:"Nail files in hard plastic case. As company which cares about customers, we thought about our conservative and male clients. Some of people prefer having classic nail files with solid handle. We have solution in this case too, glass nail files with plastic handle in safety case: hard case nail files. Hard case nail files are good for someone who travels a lot and prefers neat and simple things. Increased utility and durability due to smaller size and plastic case of this type of nail files allow you to carry it all the time with you." Here are some closeups of the two Crystal Line files I was sent. I love the pretty Swarovski crystal designs!

The mini Crystal Line file is about 3 1/2 inches long and is 8,00 €.That is about $10.50 in US dollars (with today's conversion at least).

They offer free airmail priority shipping if you spend over $70 US Dollars. (Or 50,00 €).

Here is more info on shipping:

"Packages are generally dispatched within 2 working days after receipt of payment and are shipped via air priority mail provided by Czech Post or by FedEX international priority service. Worldwide shipment guaranteed.

Delivery estimates for air priority mail is 14-17 days since the dispatch date.Shipping time for FedEx international priority is 2-4 days."

**To give you an idea on estimated shipping, I put these three files in my cart and began the checkout process. Airmail Priority shipping was 3,00€ and FedEx International Priority was 28,00 €.

So tell me what you think of these pretty glass nail files from Mont Bleu Company! Would you order? Do you like the Crystal Line or the Hard Case files more? Or is there something else on the site you are interested in? Thanks so much for reading!

*Products in this post were sent for me to review with my honest opinion.

Friday, April 26, 2013

Hello readers! Today, Sea Lore launched a new collection called Spring Seas! It is 5 polishes: Leaping Lyretail, Dancing Discus, Jumping Jellyfish, Springing Seahorse, and Popping Parrotfish. I'm going to show each one in their own post with a little nail art to go with the name of the polish!

My favorite of the group is the one I chose to wear first: Leaping Lyretail! It is a gorgeous and vibrant hot pink jelly with white squares, yellow and pink hexes and hot pink circle glitter! I'm showing 2-3 coats below with top coat. This is packed with glitter so let each coat dry before adding the next as to not cause it to drag off any previous glitter. I can't get enough of this color combination and instead of swatching the collection, I had to stop on this and wear it as a full mani.

And here is my cartoon version of a Lyretail fish over the gorgeous polish:

Tell me your thoughts on the first polish in the new Spring Seas Collection! I did not expect to pick the pink as my favorite but I couldn't help it! Stay tuned for the other 4 polishes in the Spring Seas Collection!

Thursday, April 25, 2013

Hello, readers! I have a super adorable new nail polish collection to share with you by Red Dog Designs. It is inspired by the original Strawberry Shortcake characters and it is called the Berry Friends Collection.

Let's start out with the most well-known berry friend, Strawberry Shortcake! It is a pink base with pink shimmer, and a mix of red, hot pink, green, white, and black in hex and square glitters. I'm showing 2 coats below with top coat, it applied easily with no issues!

The shimmer in these polishes is amazing!

Next, we have Lemon Meringue. It is a yellow base with gold shimmer, and a mix of yellow, gold, white, copper and green in hex and circle glitter. I'm not a huge yellow fan but I really like this polish! I only needed two coats for full coverage and that's what I am showing below with top coat.

Blueberry Muffin is a favorite of mine from this collection! It is a blue base with a turquoise shimmer, and a mix of various hues of blue, periwinkle, white and purple in hex and square glitters. This is the only polish that I used 3 coats on but it is gorgeous! I love the shimmer! Shown with top coat.

Raspberry Tart is next! It is a lavender base with a violet shimmer, and a mix of various hues of purple, berry, fuchsia, white and green in hexes, squares, micro slices, and circle glitters. I'm showing 2 coats below with top coat. No issues to report!

Lastly, we have Purple Pieman. It is the only jelly based polish of the collection. It has a purple jelly base with a blue shimmer, and a mix of microfine holo, berry, blue, and a rainbow of colors in hex and square glitters. I'm showing two coats with top coat but could have done three if I wanted a deeper base color. No issues to report!

Tell me your thoughts on the Red Dog Designs Berry Friends Collection? Favorites? Any specific one you HAVE to have?

These will be in stock at the link below tomorrow, April 26th at 5:00pm EDT.

Wednesday, April 24, 2013

Good morning, readers! I have something a little bit different to show you today. It's loose glitter from Lime Crime! You have probably heard of them for their nail polish line of dessert-inspired pastel colors. Here is my post on that collection. Well, they have also released a Zodiac inspired line of loose glitters to use on nails or in any other beauty application you need. I have 6 of the 13 to show you today.

Let's take a look!

They come in these super adorable boxes:

The inside of the boxes are detailed as well!

The caps are adorned with zodiac symbols around the edge and I just love the detail put into the packaging. I've noticed that with all of the Lime Crime makeup.

Here is the stack of 6 so you can see the gorgeous colors!

Some color shifting, holographic, and multicolored glitters!

This is what you see when you unscrew the cap. You have to peel off the protective sticker to let the glitter shake out.

I decided to do a mani with all 6 so you could get a good look for all of the colors. This is how I did it:

1) Paint one coat of white and allow to dry completely.

2) Using non-fast dry clear top coat, I did an uneven line 1/3 of my nail from the cuticle toward the tip.

3) While the clear was still wet, I shook the color I wanted to stick to the clear all over it.

NOTE: this will be a little messy. I suggest doing this over a piece of paper so you can save the excess or just for easier cleanup.

4) Once that has set for a minute or two, I gently pressed down all over the glitter with my finger to make sure it was adhering to the clear.

5) I repeated these steps for the other 2 sections on each nail. I was going for a gradient look but it turned out more like stripes instead.

6) Once all of the glitter had been applied and clear was allowed to dry completely, I used a soft makeup brush(like for blush or for velvet flocking powder nails if you have a kit like I do) and brushed around the nail and cuticles to get rid of the excess glitter. I also gently brushed across the nail to get any extras off.

I'm not sure how long these would last like this, so if you wanted, you could seal the glitter in with a thick top coat. I think this could be similar to the "rockstar nails" I've seen before. I love that you can apply wet polish in any pattern and the glitter will stick. There are a lot of possibilities!

I've labeled the names for you on the macro shots:

Virgo:Pure like virgin snow. Transluscent white at first glance, this glitter turns violet-blue on application!

Pisces:Periwinkle-blue with green/copper shift.

Aquarius:Deep midnight blue with a marvelous purple/turquoise shift.

Ophiuchus:Multi-colored holographic. Think disco ball in a jar. Named after a hoax that suggested Ophiucus to be a missing sign in the zodiac.

Capricorn:Forest green that shifts from blue-green to green-gold depending on the angle. Reminiscent of a june bug.

Cancer:Rich turquoise, blue/green shift.

What do you think of these Zodiac Glitters from Lime Crime? Would you get some? Which are your favorites? There are 7 more colors so go check them out at the link below!

Tuesday, April 23, 2013

Good morning, readers! We went out of town for the weekend for a little family vacation so I am just now getting back into the groove around here and had time to write up this post for you! These are the Limited Edition Milani Textured Creams Collection. Bright, vibrant cremes with a textured finish!

Textured polishes are the new craze and I am loving them! These are different from the OPI Sands, Julie G Gumdrops, and Zoya Pixie Dusts because they are cremes and not glittery shades and I love that they stand apart from the rest! I liked these much more on that I thought I would and the colors are gorgeous!

I'll say a few things about the collection as a whole so I'm not repeating myself throughout the post. All of the polishes needed 2 coats for full coverage and full texture. More coats and it starts to loose the look and one coat just isn't enough. You have to let the first coat dry completely to the textured look before applying the second or you risk it not drying all the way and messing it up. All had really easy application with no issues to report there!

One of my top favorites of the collection is Shady Gray. It's a deep gray and the texture reminds me of wet cement!

Next, we have Purple Streak. It is a deep purple and the darkest look out of the collection.

Aqua Splash is my other favorite. I love this color!

Tainted In Red is an orange toned red and is a great summer color.

The brightest of the bunch is Yellow Mark. I was especially glad about the coverage with this yellow. Yellows seem to be the problem child when it comes to polish opaqueness and there were no issues here.

Lastly, my third favorite color, Spoiled In Fuchsia! I'm holding the bottle by my screen and it looks a tad more purple than my photos are showing.

Tell me your thoughts on the Milani Texture Creams! You can find these for a limited time at Meijer, Walgreens, HEB, and Fred Meyer.

You can also purchase from the Milani Cosmetics website below for $4.99 each: